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Crêpes Suzette

I was excited about yesterday’s brunch for a week leading up to it. Crêpes are on thing that everyone in my family loves. So when I told them that May 6 was Crêpes Suzette Day, they were excited, too.

Over my lifetime I have made crêpes dozens of times. My own passion for these light, eggy pancakes came from my father. He made them many times when I was little. In high school he made them for a sleepover I had and my friends were also hooked.

With all of the varieties of crêpes I have made, savory and sweet, I have never made Crêpes Suzette. It didn’t seem daunting, just not what I thought the family would like. I decided to go ahead and see what they thought.

The batter isn’t hard to make, though it is definitely something you want to make ahead of time. It needs to be refrigerated for a few hours prior to cooking. Also the most important ingredient for Crêpes Suzette, the beurre Suzette, should be given time to mingle.

It always takes me a few tries to remember exactly how hot to have the skillet and how to make the perfect crêpes. Once I have it down it goes smoothly. The crêpes don’t take long to cook, so it goes quickly.

Daughter Number Three had been helping me with the beginning stages of the Crêpes Suzette and was eager to assist me in the final step, pouring on the alcohol and lighting the crêpes on fire. Having watched my fair share of cooking shows I told her ahead of time that this doesn’t always go according to plan. We did not really end up flambéing our crêpes, but we did have fun trying.

Everyone loved the Crêpes Suzette. I was overjoyed. The Hubs even asked if he could take over so I could eat. My guess is that it looked like so much fun he wanted to be a part of it. Yes, this was a fun dish to make and eat. It will definitely be something we eat for brunch again.

Daughter Number Three ate a ridiculous number of crêpes. She really loved them.

Have you ever eaten Crêpes Suzette? If so, have you ever made them? These crêpes definitely fall right at the top of my list of favorites.

Crêpes Suzette

Ingredients

Crêpe Batter

Crêpes Suzette Sauce (Beurre Suzette)

½cupbutter

¼cupgranulated sugar

Juice of 1 orangeabout 4 tablespoons

Zest of 1 orange

½cupGrand Marnier or Cointreau

Powdered Sugar to garnish

Instructions

For the Crêpes

In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, and milk. In a separate small bowl whisk together flour, salt, and sugar until combined. Whisk the flour mixture into the milk and eggs. Strain the flour mixture through a strainer, mix in the butter thoroughly. Refrigerate batter for at least an hour.

Heat a 6-inch crêpe pan about one teaspoon of butter. Add 2-3 tablespoons of the batter and tilt the skillet quickly in all directions to distribute the batter evenly. Cook over moderately high heat until the edges of the crêpe curl up and start to brown, 45 seconds to a minute. Flip the crêpe and cook for about 30 seconds longer, until a few brown spots appear on the bottom. Remove the crêpe gently from the skillet to a platter. Repeat with the remaining batter until batter is gone. Re-butter skillet after every 1 or 2 crêpes.

For the Sauce

Zest one orange and set zest aside. Juice one orange and set aside.

In the bowl of a food processor add the butter and sugar. Blend thoroughly. Add a small amount of orange zest and pulse to blend. Reserve remainder of the zest for garnish.

With the motor of the food processor running add the orange juice slowly to the butter. Only use about 4 tablespoons of the juice. If you have more, set aside for a refreshing drink later.

Scrape the butter into a glass bowl. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

To assemble

In a large heavy bottomed skillet over medium-high heat, melt tablespoons of the beurre Suzette. When the butter is hot add 1 crêpe to the pan. Allow the crêpe to cook in the hot butter for about 1 minute and using a long spatula gently flip. Fold into fourths and set along the edge of the pan. Continue with 3 more crêpes. Add 3 tablespoons of liqueur. Remove from the heat. Using a long-handled match, ignite the brandy and stir the crepes in the sauce until the flames subside. Transfer to plates. Serve immediately with powdered sugar and garnished with orange zest. Repeat with remaining crêpes and beurre Suzette.